He spent two-and-a-half years in charge of the Bostik South East club, having previously been assistant there, and guided them to the play-offs in 2015/16.

City chairman Tim Clark revealed that the club had received a number of inquiries about the job which wasn't advertised, but Cook was the obvious choice for he and fellow director Keith Vaughan.

He explained: "The three of us had a good two-hour meeting yesterday (Monday).

"Clive expressed an interest very early on. He's extremely experienced and he's used to getting a team together.

"He's got experience at this level and the one above and we've got similar ideas about how we want to move the club forward.

"I think he's had other things he could have done (since leaving Hythe) but he wanted to wait for the right opportunity.

"I think he sees it as something he can really get his teeth into."

Mr Clark says that Cook hopes to arrange a meeting with the existing squad and that the door isn't shut to anyone.

After Smith's sacking the City squad issued a statement calling for his re-instatement.

Mr Clark added: "Clive wants to have a meeting with the players just to gauge how some of them are feeling.

"I guess they fall into three camps, those who have had a bit of a grumble, those who have a had a lot to say, mainly on social media, and then there are the younger ones, who probably just want to play and not get involved.

"We've deliberately kept a low profile over the past couple of weeks but now it's time to move on.

"We're already looking forward to pre-season and getting some decent games in the diary."